The period between the World Wars saw significant upheavals and transformations across the globe. Revolutions in Mexico, Russia, and China brought new ideologies like nationalism and communism to prominence, challenging European ideals.
The World Between the Wars: Revolutions, Depression, and Authoritarian Response
The Authoritarian Response
Economic problems worldwide led to the rise of Hitler and the Nazis in Germany, taking advantage of the country's widespread debt to provide an image of future stability and prosperity. Facists emerged in Spain, under Fransico Franco, and fought during the Spanish Civil War. President Lazaro Cardenas rose to reform Mexico, Getulio Vargas became the new president in Brazil following a short civil war, and in Argentina, Juan Peron led a military-style government, although economic issues returned and he was exiled. Japan became militarized after industrialization helped it recover from the depression, conquering the Chinese province of Manchuria and other locations in Asia by the late 1940s. In Russia, Stalin aimed to create an industrialized nation under an authoritarian government and, unwilling to fight Germany, sighed an agreement with Hitler in 1939 that would later be broken.
The Global Great Depression (above- large number of people waiting in soup line, unemployed)
Occurred around late 1920s and had significant impact on national and international level, caused by postwar econmic problems in EUrope and dependency of weaker economies, and declining employment in key Western industrial sectors, resulted in widespread loss of money and unemployment, but also the fall of parliamentary systems and new actions taken in attempts to curb the devastation
Revolution: The First Waves
Revolution spread throughout key regions, including Mexico, Russia, and China. New movements involving nationalism and communism displayed major challenges to European ideals
The Roaring Twenties (above- Life magazine cover during the period of the 1920s, depicts clothing worn and people dancing)
Stability in 1920s, democratic republic in Germany maaking positive strides, new mass consumerism spread, although US became more isolationist after refusing to enter League of Nations and fear from "Red Scare", Japan entered new phase of industrialization but still dependent on western exports, rise of facism and authoritarian regimes in Europe
Key Terms
Politburo- Stalin's executive committee, meetings with party congresses grew to have little significance as Stalin imposed new controls over life in Russia
Socialist realism- dominant school instituted by Stalin, emphasized heroic idealizations of workers, soldiers, and peasants
Five-year plans- system under state planning commission began to set clear priorities for industrial development, including expected output levels and new facilities
Corporatism- emphasized organic nature of society, with state as mediator adjusting interests of different social groups
Spanish Civil War- caused by spread of facism into Spain, forces supporting parliamentary republic plus social reform had feuded since 1931 with advocates of military-backed authoritarian state, outright civil war broke out in 1936
Gestapo- Hitler's secret police, arrested hundreds of thousands of politcal opponents
Totalitarian state- constructed by Hitler in Germany, new kind of government that would exercise massive, direct control over vitrually all activies of its subjects
New Deal- policies implemented to offer more direct aid to Americans at risk, through increased unemployment benefits and other measures
Popular Front- liberal, socialist, and communist parties' responses to growing support for nationalism, formed in 1936 to win French election
Great Depression- begun in US in 1929 but more sullenly in many parts of the world even earlier, resulted from new problems in insudtrial economy of Europe and US, combined with long-term weakness in economies that depended on sales of cheap exports in international market
Long March- took place in 1934, speareaded by Mao, consisted of 90,000 followers across thousands of miles to more remote northwest, solidified Mao's leadership of Chinese communish, giving many followers sense that they could not be defeated
Whampoa Military Academy- founded with Soviet help and partially staffed by Russian instructors, gave Nationalists critical military dimension to their political maneuvering
Guomingdang- Chinese Nationalist party, proved to be communists' great rival for mandate to rule in China, struggling to survive in south
Collectivization- program used by Stalin to accelerate industrial development while attacking peasant land ownership
Comintern- Communist International office, set up by many revolutionary leaders to guide process of communist parties forming in the West
Supreme Soviet- apparatus of central state, had many of trappings of a parliament and was elected by universal suffrage
Union of Societ Socialist Republics- socialist republics set up by new constitution, had dominance of ethnic Russians preserved in central state apparatus, although certain groups (notably Jews) were ggiven no distinct representation
New Economic Policy- issued by Lenin in 1921 to reduce economic disarray, promised considerable freedom of action for small business owners and peasant landowners
Red Army- powerful new army constructed under leadership of Leon Trotscy, with able generals and masses of loyal conscripts, was early beneficiary of two ongoing sources of strength for communist Russia
Cristeros- members of conservative peasant movement backed by church in central Mexico, also backed by conservative politicans, fought to stop slide toward secularization
Mexican Constitution of 1917- promised land reform, limited foreign ownership of key resources, guaranteed rights of workers
Syndicalism- sought to use a general strike to seize power, some labor agitation increased under it
Fascism- had roots in late 19th century, groups disenchanted with liberal parliamentary systems and social conflict began to urge need for new, authoritarian leadership and devotion to nationalist values over capitalist profit-seeking and socialist class struggle
Cubist movement- led by Pablo Picasso, artist creativity rendered familiar objects in geometrical shapes
Key People
Japan
Korekiyo Takahashi- 1930s minister of finance, under whom government increased its spending to provide jobs, which in turn generated new demands fo food and manufactured items
General Tojo Hideki- part of group of young army officers that attacked key government and banking officers and murdered prime minister in May 1932, increasingly interfered with civilian cabinets, blocking appointment of most liberal bureaucrats and leading to series of increasingly militaristic prime ministers
Latin America
Argentina- Juan D. Peron- (1895-1974) emerged as power in government, used position in Ministry of Labor to appeal to workers raising their ralaries, improving benefits, and generally supporting demands, increasingly gained popular support and as presidentforged alliances with different groups
Brazil- Getulio Vargas- (1872-1954) new president in Brazil, promised liberal reforms and elimination of worst abuses of old government system, although once in power he launched new kind of centralized political program, imposing federal administrators over state governments
China (above- Mao Zedong, left, and Chiang Kai-shek, right
Li Dazhao- intellectual Chinese thinker who called for reworking of Marxist ideology to fit China's situation, was from peasant origins but excelled in school and eventually became college teacher
Mao Zedong- joined Li Dazhao's study circle interested by his version of Marxism, angered by what they perceived as China's betrayal to imperialist powers and hostile to merchants and commerce, longed for retern to political system in which those who governed were deeply committed to social reform and welfare
Chiang Kai-shek- young military officer, first head of Whampoa Military Academy, made career in military and by virtue of connections with powerful figures in Shanghai's underworld, not happy with China's communist alliance
Yuan Shikai- hoped to seize vacated Manchu throne and found new dynasty
Russia
Josef Stalin- name meant
steel, accended to lead Russia following death of Lenin in 1924, represented strongly nationalist version of communism
Alexander Kerensky- Russian revolutionary leader, eager to see genuine parliamentary rule, religious and other freedoms, and number of political and legal changes
Italy
Benito Mussolini- former socialist and soldier, formed fascio di combattimento ("union for struggle") in Italy, supported facist movement (above- Mussolini burning books)
Mexico
Lazaro Cardenas- President in Mexico 934-1940, distributed over 40 million acres of land and creaated communal farms and credit system to support them, also expropriatedforeign oil companies that refused to obey Mexican law and created state oil monopoly, and expanded rural education programs
Diego Rivera and Jose Clemente Orozco- artists, recaptured Mexican past and outlined social program for future in stunning murals on public buildings, designed to inform, convince, and entertain all at the same time
Alvaro Obregon- able general, learned new tactics of machine guns and trenches from war in Europe, beat Pancho Villa's cavalry in series of bloody battles in 1915 to emerge as leader of Mexican government
Victoriano Huerta- sought to impose Diaz-type dictatorship supported by large landowners, army and foreign companies, but tide of revolution continued, saw opponents to his illegal rule
Francisco Madero- wealthy son of elite family, proposed to run against Diaz but was arrested, called for revolt upon release and led government before being removed and assassinated
Porfirio Diaz- led regime in power in Mexico since 1876, during which tremendous economic changes had been made and foreign concessions in mining, railroads, and other secotrs of economy created sense of prosperity among Mexican elite
Emiliano Zapata- goal of land reform expressed in motto "Tierra y Libertad" (Land and Liberty), rose in revolt demanding sweeping land reform
Pancho Villa- former bandit and able commander, led small farmers, railroaders, and cowboys in rebellion in northern Mexico
